GMing Makes You a Better Person: Writer
Writing a great campaign for your players is more art than it is science. But after seeing many of my ideas fall flat on their face and many frustrated players, I've found what works best for me and what has brought the most enjoyment for many of my players.
The following is a framework I use that has brought me years of success in writing exciting, fulfilling, and memorable campaigns for each of my players.
Arcs & Beats
An Arc is a self-contained chapter of your campaign. They span multiple sessions and consist of many story beats. I prefer to focus one arc on each of my players, focusing on their backstory and lending to their characters growth. Each arc will usually shed light on the greater story while making sure to hit each part of a typical 5 act structure.
A Beat is an exciting event or moment of significance. When preparing a session, I make sure to always have at least one beat that the players will hit. This is what makes the session worth playing and what keeps players interested in the game as a whole.
I don't think this will sound like groundbreaking advice to many readers, but can lead new Game Master's down the right path to success and is a nice lens to apply to your current game as an experienced GM.
If you make sure you are always hitting beats and progressing an arc, every single thing you write or plan is automatically a worthwhile piece of the story and will never go to waste.
In Practice
Using Arcs and Beats helped me to learn pacing and made players want to see what happens next in the story.
I once put my players through a pseudo-random forest of encounters that lasted WAY too long. It added so much content, but none of it mattered in the long run, so something had to change.
Having a session where nothing of value happens feels bad. Your friends are setting aside a nice chunk of their time for this game that they love, so when a session flops, you feel it.
That's why I always try to make sure something of note takes place. Sometimes you'll need to push the players towards, or better yet, plan ahead so that each possible choice the players might make will lead them to a new "piece of candy".
Over time, these tools have bled in to other facets of the game. Recently, I've seen GM's and Players use AI to write for them. While it may be a great tool, if done poorly it results in the equivalent of a school reading assignment that no one else at the table connects with.
Instead, I'd suggest trying to write character backstories or NPC's with arcs and beats in mind. Describing your fighter's previous life? Make each paragraph have a beat in it. It will allow listeners to cling to the story your telling. I'm using it writing this post right now, making sure each piece has something that you can take away with you.